Vance Leads Iran Backchannel Talks After Midterm Losses
Vice President JD Vance has held near-daily discussions with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani and Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir over the past two weeks to revive a ceasefire and restart stalled nuclear negotiations with Iran, according to Axios.
The diplomatic push comes as the Trump administration explores a way out of the conflict, with Vance now taking the lead in backchannel efforts after having opposed the war before it began at the end of February. President Donald Trump is allowing the talks to continue to see whether a deal with Tehran is possible, though the U.S. military remains prepared to resume strikes at short notice if negotiations fail.
From Opposition to Lead Negotiator
Vance was among the most skeptical voices in Trump’s inner circle before the conflict began, advocating for a diplomatic solution instead of military action. He later led the U.S. negotiating team at an April summit on Iran in Islamabad and was personally involved in discussions that produced a U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding in June. The vice president subsequently headed the American delegation for direct talks with Iran in Switzerland, where Tehran agreed to invite UN inspectors to visit its nuclear facilities.
That understanding collapsed shortly afterward when Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps resumed attacks on ships. Two weeks ago, Vance wrote to Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, proposing a return to direct negotiations, according to Axios.
Regional Mediators Coordinate With Washington
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed said efforts to prevent further escalation continued through coordination with officials in Washington and Tehran. “For the past couple of weeks we have worked with colleagues in the US administration who have a genuine intention to find a way to contain the situation and to de-escalate it,” he said. He added that talks with the Trump administration continued after the midterm elections, though they became less active as Washington dealt with other priorities, and that a deal remained possible.
I'm seeing a lot of fake information about a potential deal to reopen the Strait and end Iran's nuclear weapons program. First, the Iranians are not receiving any cash, and no funds are being released for simply signing a deal or attending a meeting. The deal is structured to…
“We’re talking to them,” Trump told reporters on Friday when asked about his message to Iran. Vance has also linked the war to the Republican Party’s losses in this week’s U.S. midterm elections.